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A flash of silver before the knife vanished beneath her sleeve. Xia didn’t know that he was watching.
Before she turned around, he slipped out the door, running as fast as possible to the other room. Xisuma’s door, slightly ajar, creaked open as he whizzed past it, revealing the long-empty chamber.
Xizara knew Xia’s plan - she wasn’t very good at keeping her papers organized - and he had to stop it. Because even though he knew that it would fix some things, the structure of their lives would come crashing down around them - not to mention that they’d get even more scrutinized by society.
He halted outside of his mother’s room, leftover momentum carrying him forward. His footsteps echoed on the purpur stone, and he prayed that his sister hadn’t noticed it.
There were two options. Sneak inside and lock the door, preventing Xia from getting in but locking himself inside, or confront her at the door and pray he could convince her to stop.
Carefully weighing the merits of each option, he settled to confront her. Even Xisuma could admit that she tended to listen to him most of all, and he hoped he could use that sway to put her plan to rest.
Because her plan was cold-blooded murder. And that never solved anything.
He hid in the shadow of a pillar, carefully adjusting his silvery hair so it didn’t catch the reflection of the nightlamp, just as Xia slipped out of her room cautiously and beelined for the door he was next to.
She paused, her multicolored eyes meeting his own red ones, one hand in the middle of reaching into her sleeve to draw her weapon. Crap.
”What are you doing here?” She whispered, still in her tense position. Xizara stepped out of the shadow, hovering a safe distance away.
“I know what you were going to do.”
Her eyes widened in shock. “H-how? You weren’t supposed to know. No one was supposed to know.” Her breathing became panicked. “Did you tell her?” She demanded, stepping closer. He took a step back, out of her range. “I bet you did, little traitor. You always-“
”Stop.” Xia paused in her rant, her expression settling into something cold and threatening.
”What?”
“Stop. I didn’t tell her. But you need to understand that it’s not a good idea.”
”Tell me why not.” Her tone was back to demanding.
“You realize we don’t have Xisuma anymore? Who’s going to take care of you once she’s dead? No one has the power to fight for your innocence. Everyone will turn against you once they realize that there was no one but you it could have been, you’re going to be taken to jail, and what am I going to do?”
She laughed quietly, but hysterically. “Oh, what are you going to do? It’s always about you, you damned creature. If that- thing- keeps living, what’s it going to do to us? I can circumvent uppity voidkind for longer than your pathetic self could ever. You’re just too cowardly to face the consequences. That’s always been the difference between us. You will never take action.” She spat, taking another step and resting her free hand on the door knob. “I will. Who’s going to give her payback for all the scars she’s given us? Emotional and physical? You can’t be excusing that when it hurts every day. You’re not going to stop me again.” She paused. “Oh, and they’ll never think I did it. Once she’s gone, who’s going to be left to frame?”
Xizara blinked, her words setting in. “You’d frame me?”
”Yes, I would! If you’re going to get in my way for the umpteenth time, I may as well frame you, get away with it, and achieve total freedom.” Her eyes sparkled with a manic gleam, matching the glint of light against the iron blade of her knife. “If you’re going to play doorstop… I may as well do away with you too.”
”What the-“ he didn’t have time to react before she took an ungraceful slash at him, barely missing his face. He staggered back, calling his power and desperately hoping this fight was going to be loud enough to wake the deep sleeper that was their mother. But the heavy iron door was shut… it was a good chance that nothing would happen anyway.
He formed the glowing aura of magic into a shield, her blade bouncing off of it and drawing sparks, horribly bright in the perpetual darkness of the void. The magic - a gift from void itself - wouldn’t stand against the light for very long.
Xia seemed to notice, because with an unrelenting madness she took another stab, each one weakening his shield - and draining energy as he kept it up, not leaving enough to craft a weapon of his own.
It broke with a loud shattering sound, and she stumbled forward with unexpected momentum.
“This is your last chance,” she hissed after a quick recovery, holding her knife to his throat - keeping him pinned against the corner. “You don’t say a word to try to convince me otherwise, and I don’t kill and frame you. Understood?”
Hardly breathing, he nodded. She stepped back, satisfied.
”Heed my warning.”
And he had no choice as she viciously slashed his arm, tearing through the thin fabric of his shirt. Xia considered the dark blood dripping from the tip of the blade, walking away to execute her plan.
Evil Xisuma blinked his eyes open, tears springing free as he clutched his left arm, half expecting blood to be dripping through his fingers. But it was just a phantom pain.
He sighed with relief, taking in the plain white ceiling above him. Just a dream.
Or a memory. He couldn’t tell which anymore.